Your bedroom is where you spend lots of time, so it’s important to create a space that’s peaceful, calm, and inviting. We have some ideas to help you make your bedroom a relaxing oasis.
From the most soothing paint colours to lighting, bedding, temperature, and aromatherapy, there are many things you can do to enhance your sleep environment. Here are some ideas to make your bedroom a soothing place of slumber.
Clean it up
One of the most important things to encourage relaxation and calm is to make sure your space is clean. This ensures your senses won’t be overwhelmed by piles of laundry waiting to be folded and put away, shoes strewed around, dust bunnies, or piles of books waiting to be read.
Dust dressers, nightstands, ceiling fan blades, and every other surface so you’re not breathing in dust. Clear the cobwebs, and clean the floor. Keep your bed sheets and blankets clean.
Declutter
Decluttering your bedroom is a good way to ensure you’re not visually distracting from relaxing in your bedroom. Chaos in your home can create chaos in your mind, and that doesn’t lead to a sound night’s sleep.
Sort through your room’s items and consider which items are of actual value and which items are just taking up valuable real estate in your home. Find a home for the excess stuff. Your goal is to have a minimal amount of possessions in view.
Clear your dresser top and bedside table of all but the essentials and a few sentimental or decorative items. Go through your closet and donate what clothes, shoes, and accessories no longer fit and are in good shape or ones you haven’t worn in a while.
Don’t clutter your walls with pictures, but hang a few serene pieces of art or personal photos that bring a smile to your face.
Cool colours
Paint the walls of your bedroom in cool, soothing colours known for helping you relax.
Pick up a colour wheel from your favourite arts and crafts store, interior designer, or home improvement store, or find a colour wheel online. This wheel shows primary, tertiary and other colours and their relationships with one another. The colour wheel also shows warm and cool colours. It’s an important tool in picking wall colours and complementing décor colours for furnishings and accessories or less dominant walls.
When it comes to your bedroom walls, choose cool colours, which promote a calm, peaceful, soothing feeling. Cool colours include blues, blue-greens, purples, and lavenders.
Blue is a calming, serene colour that helps you relax, re-balance, and clear your mind after a stressful day. Blue also helps lower blood pressure and steady your breathing. These are great aspects to help you fall asleep or unwind. You can warm cool colours by adding warm-coloured accents like pillows or wall art.
Green hues invite an aura of prosperity and relaxing restoration. Green hues coax mind-clearing, composing, restful feelings. Green also is a great choice for people who love the outdoors, giving your room a natural look.
Check out our favourite relaxing bedroom colours:
- Light Lilac
- Pale Beige
- Pale Blue
- Light grey
- Light green
You can keep neutral colours for accents, or add a dash of colour. Remember, your goal in decorating is to bring an element of soothing relaxation.
Cooldown
Cooldown the night time temperature in your bedroom for a comfortable, deeper sleep. Overheating is one of the most common roadblocks to restful sleep.
According to the Sleep Foundation, sleep experts have concluded through research that the ideal sleeping temperature is somewhere around 65 degrees. Your temperature naturally dips at night, and if your room is too warm, it can cause you to be restless during the night because it doesn’t align with your body’s natural dip in temperature.
Try experimenting with the night time temperature in your bedroom until you find the perfect match.
Layer your bedding so you can easily adjust your own temperature over the course of the night. You don’t want to fully wake up to adjust the blanket.
Choose a good pillow and keep it smelling fresh
Your pillow plays a big part in how well you sleep at night. You need one with support and one that aligns with your preferred sleep position, whether that’s on your back, side, or stomach. Some people prefer a firm pillow while others sleep best on a soft one. Your pillow may also be beyond its life expectancy. Experiment to find a pillow that fits you best.
If you have access to an outdoor clothesline, hang your pillows and pillowcases out in the air for a bit for a soothing, sunshine-fresh scent when you rest your head.
Choose the right pyjamas
Having the perfect pair of pyjamas is essential for your relaxation. Find pyjamas that let you move freely, without chunky buttons or restrictive elastic. Fabrics can make a big difference in helping you get a good rest, too.
Pick sleepwear that makes you comfortable. Some prefer silky nightwear, while others love to snuggle in soft cotton.
Cotton is breathable, lightweight, and cosy. It also doesn’t irritate your skin. However, it’s not good at wicking away any night sweats.
Silk helps you regulate your body temperature, but real silk requires dry-cleaning and slips around while you sleep.
Flannel is oh-so-comfortable and helps you stay toasty on cold nights.
If you suffer from night sweats, look for moisture-wicking sleepwear. The materials in these pyjamas help lock the moisture away from your skin. Bamboo is a natural fabric that’s soft, hypoallergenic, and wicks moisture naturally. It’s a great choice for those suffering from allergies. Bamboo pyjamas also are biodegradable, which is good for the planet.
Fleece and wool keep you warm, but you may become overheated, too. Wool can be itchy on your skin, and fleece doesn’t breathe well.
If your feet get cold, this can interfere with a good night’s sleep, so make sure you have comfy, lightweight socks to wear to bed.
Prep your bedside table
Once you’re in bed, you don’t want to be popping back out to get something you’re missing. So, prep your bedside table to have everything you may need while you’re in your bedroom. This may include lip balm, body cream, an alarm, charger for your cell phone, a glass of water, and a noise machine to block out noises like neighbourhood barking dogs or city noises.
Treat your senses
Try to add sensory experiences in your bedroom that help you focus on physical comforts. Focusing on these can help coax your mind into the present and make a difference in your mindset and mood.
Add a subtle, nice aroma to your space. Inhaling the scents of essential oils, or aromatherapy can help improve your sense of well-being, reducing anxiety and stress. Try these relaxation-promoting essential oils in a diffuser: lavender, chamomile, jasmine, rose, and vanilla.
Position a few battery-operated candles in your bedroom within your sight. The flickering can be visually soothing and relaxing.
Wrap yourself in something soft
Find super-soft sheet sets with a high thread count. The higher the thread count, the more luxurious the fabric feels. This can make a difference. If your sheets aren’t soft on your skin, you won’t sleep as well. Experiment with different fabrics to find what works best for you. Some people love sleeping on satin fabrics, while others find them too slippery.
Make use of texture in different parts of your room. Place a high-shag rug beside your bed so your toes sink into its luxury when you get in or out of your bed. This is a much more inviting, pampering feeling than a cold floor right before bed or first thing in the morning.
Look for luxuriously soft blankets that match your climate. If you’re in a northern climate, winter nights can be chilly, so choose a down comforter or something that holds your heat well. If you’re in a warmer climate, seek a lighter but velvety-soft blanket that breathes and doesn’t trap air. Try two lighter blankets – you can cast aside a layer if you become too warm.
Decorative pillows on your bed can present a look of relaxation. When you walk into your bedroom during the evening and see those inviting pillows, you’ll look forward to sinking into your bed. Keep them on your bed until you’re ready to retire for the night.
Select a good mattress
Keep a good quality mattress for your sleep surface. If your body is not supported well, you will toss and turn and wake up with aches and pains. Some people require a firm mattress, while others prefer a softer one. There are numerous luxurious mattress-toppers, too. For help in choosing the best one for you, check out this mattress-buying guide.
Create a playlist
Soft music can help ease your day’s worries and lull you to sleep. There’s a reason parents sing lullabies to their children. Try soft, soothing music, or guided meditation videos.
Reach for a book
Keep your favourite books nearby. There’s something so relaxing about reading a good book, and it helps keep you at the moment so your brain is no longer spinning with playbacks of the day’s activities or challenges. Keep one or two by your bedside within easy reach.
Create a “no work zone”
Promise yourself you won’t work in your bedroom or look at electronics like your cell phone or computer when it’s time for bed (and at least an hour before). Consider your bedroom haven a no-work zone. If you conduct business in the bedroom, your mind won’t be prepared for sleep. Your goal is to calm your brain down and focus on the now, on relaxing.
Your bedroom is a place where you should disconnect from the troubles and challenges of your occupation. The less you work in your bedroom, the better you can work the following day. This is your sanctuary, a stress-free zone.
Invite light and nature into your space
Light and nature are important elements to incorporate into your home and bedroom to encourage relaxation as you prepare for sleep.
Invite nature into your bedroom. Until you’re ready for bed, let the natural light come through and add breathing bedroom plants and flowers. They help clean the air of toxins and product oxygen. Plants that are great for your bedroom include lavender, rubber plant, pothos, English ivy, Boston fern, snake plant, and spider plant.
If you need to sleep longer in the mornings, try adding darkening blinds to your window treatments. This is helpful if you work night shifts, need rest during the day or if you don’t get up at the crack of dawn. Having a darkened room lets you sleep longer. But at other times, open the blinds and let the mood-lifting sunshine in.
At night, use LED soft, white light bulbs instead of intense incandescent lights. If you want a more relaxing ambiance, position a few battery-operated candles in your space.
Crystals and calming stones
Add some crystals and calming stones to your décor. Calming stones act as a physical object that you can create a ritual around to keep your mind focused. Blue-hued stones that are connected to the third eye chakra make the best calming stones. Some of the most calming, stress-relieving stones are:
- Amethyst
- Angelite
- Black tourmaline
- Blue lace agate
- Celestite
- Fluorite
- Lepidolite
If you’re intrigued by adding this affirmative approach to your décor, check out this website for more information on calming stones.
Make your bed every day
Develop a habit of making your bed every day. This helps you begin your day. And at the end of the day, the sight of an already-made bed, not a messy one, is welcoming so you feel more relaxed.
Enjoy your oasis
With these ideas, you can transform your bedroom into a serene, sleep-promoting oasis of calm.
